Family
by Durcy
Summary: A woman approaches Pepper Potts saying she is Tony Stark's half sister.
1. Chapter 1

Pepper Potts sat in her office on the phone. She noticed a women sitting in the lobby that she didn't notice. She had medium blond hair, blue eyes, and freckled skin. She wore a pair of jeans with a green t-shirt. When Pepper hung up the phone the women took notice and got up from her seat and headed towards Pepper's office. The door was made of glass so the woman could see Pepper staring at her. The woman knocked at the door. Pepper waved her in and she opened the door.

"Can I help you?"

"I'm your 3 o'clock."

The women looked down at her watch. The time read 2:45.

"Oh. I'm sorry I didn't realize I was this early. Do you want me to come back?"

"No. It's fine."

The woman sat down in the chair that was in front of Pepper's desk. She crossed her legs and leaned into the chair to get comfortable. Pepper waited for the woman to start talking. The woman on the other hand wasn't sure how to start the conversation. Time passed with neither of them saying a word. Pepper decided that even though the woman knew her name she would introduce herself to break the ice.

"You already know this but I'm Pepper Potts."

"I'm Samantha Cain but you can call me Sam."

"It's nice to meet you Sam. What is it that you needed to see me about?"

Pepper looked at her schedule.

"It doesn't say in my schedule what you wanted to discuss."

"I didn't want to say it over the phone because I'm not sure if it's true."

"Ok, explain."

"It's a long story but I'll start at the beginning."

Pepper sat back in her chair.

"A few months ago I was cleaning out my mother's attic where I found a note from my mother. See I never knew who my father was and in the note it explained everything to me. The note explained who my father was and why she never told me who he was."

"And what does this have to do with me?"

"Well in the note it said that my father was Howard Stark."

Pepper was skeptical of this woman. They had just met and she was proclaiming that Tony's father had an illegitimate child and that Tony had a sister.

"Can I see the note?"

Sam handed the noted to Pepper. She read over the noted and it did state that Howard Stark was her father. The noted also explained that the mother kept her father identity from her because it was a one night affair and her mother didn't want to make a fuss about it. Even though Pepper has seen the note she was still skeptical of what the woman was saying. Pepper looked up at the woman.

"The noted does say what you are saying. But…"

"I know it's unlikely but I just need to know the truth. I never had a father growing up and if the note is correct then even though I will never be able to meet my father I'll have a brother. I have no family and I just want to have a family again…. I just need to know if it is true. If the note is false then I will leave and never come back."

Pepper could understand where Sam was coming from. She herself doesn't have any family left and if she found out she had a brother she would want to know. Even though she was skeptical at first she could tell by the look in Sam's face that she truly believed what the noted said.

"All we can do is test your blood and see if you are in fact Howard Stark's daughter."

"I know this a lot to ask but can we keep this test from Tony Stark. I don't want to meet him unless the note is true. I don't want to get my hopes up just in case the note is false."

"I don't know if I can do that. If you are related to Tony I think he should know."

"Can't we just wait till the blood tests come back?"

Pepper thought it over.

"Well…. If we draw the blood now and get it into the lab right away we could get the results sooner."

"Will you be taking my blood?"

"I don't usually do things like that."

"You are the only one I trust."

"Well I guess I can make an exception."

They went down to a lab so Pepper could draw Sam's blood. No one was in the lab and so Pepper grabbed a needle and was about to draw Sam's blood. Before Pepper could get the needle in Sam's arm she stopped her.

"Is something wrong?"

"I need to tell you one more thing before we do this…. I have an ability and in order to give you an accurate blood sample I need to use it."

Pepper wondered what she was talking about. Then it occurred to her that she was dating Iron Man and he was a member of the Avengers which consists of people with special abilities. She realized that anything was possible.

"Ok."

Before her eyes the woman with medium blond hair, blue eyes, and freckled skin turned into a women with long black curly hair with porcelain skin and emerald green eyes. Pepper was taken aback by the change.

"Don't be afraid… this is what I truly look like. I came in disguise for a reason and I'll explain to you a little later."

Pepper decided to trust her because Sam had reviled her secret to her. After all someone wouldn't divulge their ability unless they trusted the person they were divulging it to. Pepper took Sam's blood and started the tests that were needed. Afterwards Sam transformed back into the blond blue eyed woman she was before. They left the lab and went back to her office.

When they first went back to the office they sat in silence. However, Pepper was wondering why Sam was in disguise.

"So you said you would explain why you are disguised."

"Well it is kind of a long story."

Pepper got on the phone with her secretary. She told her secretary to cancel all her appointments for the rest of the day. When she was off the phone she turned to Sam.

"You have as much time as you need to explain."

The two women got comfy in the chair they were sitting. Sam hesitated for a moment before decided to tell Pepper the story.

"I didn't always have this ability. When I was 13 I was sent to a boarding school. It was supposed to be a school that was really good and for people who couldn't afford to go to a good school. Well the school seemed fine at first. We did all the regular classes but two months into schooling we had to have a vaccine because supposedly there was a bad flu going around. I figured the school knew what they were doing so I got the vaccine. Some of the students got sick after they were vaccinated and they were sent home. The ones who didn't get sick stayed at the school. We were told that the vaccination required a few shots so a few months after the first shot they gave us another shot. So after the second shot I started to realize that I could shape shift. I was scared at first and I only told a friend of mine that I could shape shift. She told me that she could start fires with her mind. We had no idea that the vaccine gave us our abilities. We just thought we were special. At that time we didn't realize that other students were also getting abilities. When the adults found out that students were getting abilities everything changed. We were transported to a facility and we were locked in separate rooms. I tried to tell them that I never got an ability but they told me that if I didn't get sick from the first shot then I had to have an ability. I kept objected and they kept saying that I had to have gotten an ability. They must have figured that I never did get an ability and so they gave me another shot. I kept hiding my shape shifting ability from them so they kept giving me shots. They never did give up hope that one of the shots would give me an ability. I was there for two years. They let me write letters to my mother and call her on the phone but they told me that if I told her anything about the shots they would kill me. The guy who was the supposed principal told my mother that I couldn't come home because I needed to learn and going home would hurt my learning. My mother didn't question him because she trusted him. After I was there for two years when one of the teachers came to give me another shot I knocked him out and escaped. After I escaped I went back home. I told my mother everything. I was so afraid of the school that I knew I had to hide. My mom agreed so we approached one of her best friend Jean with an idea. Jean was my mother's best friend and she was like a second mother to me. What happed was a few months before I escaped her daughter Chloe had drown in the ocean during a fishing trip and her body was never found. She was my age and my mom asked if I could become Jean's daughter. I didn't want to do it because I would never be Sam Cain again. Plus, I knew asking to become her daughter was a huge favor. Jean didn't hesitate though. She knew I was in trouble and she wanted to protect me. I became Chloe in every way. I looked like her, I sounded like her, and everything else. The principle of the school came looking for me and he went to my mother. She pretended like she had never seen me. When she asked what happened they said I ran away. He presented my mother with a supposed note I had written that said I ran away with a boy. My mother pretended like she believed the note was true. However, I was living my life as Chloe Beckett. As days went by it became clearer and clearer that even though I was free my friends weren't. A month went by before I got the courage to go back to the facility to try and free my friends. However, I was too late and they had already moved them. Since then I have lived my life as Chloe and I haven't been myself in years."

Pepper was silent. The story of Sam's life depressed her. She wasn't able to be herself and instead she had to pretend that she was a completely different person. The teachers or whatever they were experimented on her and treated her like a lab rat. Pepper had been drawing close to Sam through the time they had been spending together. She knew that even if this woman wasn't Tony's sister she still needed to help her.


	2. Chapter 2

Authors Note: I forgot to mention this in the first chapter so I'm going to mention it here. This story takes place after The Avengers but before Iron Man 3.

When Pepper went home after work Tony was down in his lab tinkering with another Iron Man suit. Tony had always spent long hours in the lab but ever since New York he had been spending even longer hours in his lab. There would be times when Pepper would go to bed and when she woke up in the morning he was still down in the lab. Pepper tried to communicate with him about what happed in New York but he always changed the subject. Since Tony didn't want to talk about it she figured she would leave him alone and he would talk to her when the time was right.

Pepper went down to the lab to see Tony. As she was walking down the stairs she could hear his music along with the sounds of Tony working on the suit. When Pepper walked up to the open door she saw him sitting at his work bench soldering a piece of the suit. Pepper entered the lab in the middle of the song "Highway to Hell." Tony didn't hear her enter over the sound of the music. Pepper grabbed the remote to the stereo and pushed pause. Tony looked up from what he was doing and over at the stereo.

"Tony."

He turned and faced Pepper.

"Have you been down here all day?"

"Ah…"

Tony looks down at his watch. He then looks back up at Pepper.

"Not all day. I went to the bathroom… once."

Pepper shook her head.

"Have you eaten yet?"

Tony thought about it.

"As a matter of fact I did. I ate a pizza."

"A whole pizza?"

"What can I say, I was hungry."

Tony walked over to Pepper and give her a kiss.

"How was work?" Tony asked.

Pepper shook her head and pretended like nothing had happened that day.

"It was work."

Pepper felt bad for not telling Tony about Sam and the possibility that she could be his sister. However, Pepper thought that there could be a possibility that the note Sam's mother had left could be false. She didn't want to worry anyone before the blood results were back.

That night instead of working in his lab Tony went to bed with Pepper. As Tony was sleeping Pepper was taking in Tony's features. She realized that Tony and Sam had similar features. They were both the same height and they both had dark hair. The more she thought about it Pepper started to realize that they also had similar facial expressions. Pepper really started to think that Sam might be Howard Stark's daughter and Tony's half sister.

The next day and a half were like hell for Pepper. She hated keeping secrets from Tony but she felt it was best that she didn't tell him. She just wanted to get the DNA test in and get it over with. But as much as she wanted the results Pepper was also afraid of the results. She didn't know how Tony would react if he found out he had a half sister. Tony never really talked about his parents but Pepper knew that even though Tony thought his father wasn't very affectionate he knew his father loved him. It was his mother that was the affectionate one towards him and Tony loved her dearly. Pepper didn't know how the news that his father cheated on his mother would affect Tony.

Pepper was sitting in her office working when a lab technician walked in with a folder.

"I have the results from the DNA test."

Pepper looked up frantically. She was the one running the DNA tests and she didn't understand why he was bringing her the results. He held out the folder and she took them from him. She started looked over the results but then realized that the technician was still standing in front of her desk. She looked up at him.

"Can I help you?" Pepper asked.

"Oh… I was just wondering what the DNA test was for. I mean I noticed that you personally were running the tests so I was wondering what they were for."

"It is none of your concern," Pepper sternly said.

The technician looked shocked by her stern words. Pepper didn't mean to be stern but the results were personal and she thought it was intrusive of him to ask about them. There was no way for him to know who the tests were for since she listed Tony and Sam as subject 1 and subject 2 but she didn't like that he had seen them. When the technician left Pepper went on to read the results of the DNA test. The results said that Tony and Sam were blood relatives that shared the same father.

Pepper took a deep breath and processed the information that she had just read. Although Pepper was happy that Tony had family she wasn't sure how to approach him with the news. It would have been easier if the results indicated that they weren't related.

Pepper picked up the phone and dialed the number of Sam's hotel. She thought it would be best if she told Sam the results first and then tell Tony. The phone wrong a few times before Sam picked up.

"Hello."

"Hi, this is Pepper."

"Hi, Pepper. Did you get the DNA test results back?"

"Yeah. I just got them… and it turns out your mother was telling the truth. Howard Stark is your father."

Sam thought about what the results meant. Sam had been alone for the last five years after her mother and Jean died. She was relieved that she had family but realized that Tony didn't yet know that they were family.

"Ok… now what?" Sam asked.

"Well I think it would be best if I tell Tony… and after that we'll see."

Sam knew that Pepper was right. Sam wanted to be the one to tell him that she was his sister but he didn't know her. He knew Pepper and would trust her. Even though Sam was hopeful she feared the worst and hoped that Tony could accept her.

"That sounds fine."

"Ok… I'll call you later then."

Pepper hung up the phone. Even though Pepper wasn't sure how Tony was going to react she thought it best to tell me as soon as possible. She called her secretary and told her to cancel all her meetings for the day and that if anyone wanted her they would need to call her at home.

When Pepper got home she saw Tony sitting in the living room eating Chinese food. He sat on the couch with a takeout container of roast duck won ton noodles in his lab. When he looked up and saw Pepper entering the living room he was surprised to see her home considering it was only two in the afternoon.

"Hey, why are you home so early," Tony mumbled with a mouth half full of food.

"We need to talk."

"Ah, oh. Are you breaking up with me…?" Tony sarcastically said.

Pepper gave Tony a dirty look that told him to be serious.

"Ok. I'll be serious… for once…. What's up?"

Tony sat the Chinese food on the table while Pepper went to sit next to him.

"A woman came to my office the other day…"

"Oh, is this going to get kinky?"

"Tony, Stop. This is serious."

Tony decided to zip up and shut up and listen to Pepper.

"As I was saying. A woman came to my office the other day and said that her mother and your father had an affair and that your father is her father."

Tony's first reaction was to give Pepper a look that asked if she was putting him on. When Pepper looked back at him with a deadpan face he knew that she was telling the truth. Tony immediately thought he knew the answer to why the woman had come to see Pepper.

"She's probably just after my money… Case closed."

"No, Tony case not closed. I ran her DNA against yours and the results said you two have the same father."

Tony looked at Pepper bewildered. He tried to process the information but it infuriated him. Tony stood up and started to walk away from Pepper but four steps away from her he turned back and stood in front of her.

"I can't believe you kept this from me," Tony angrily said.

"It was for your own good."

"My own good… my own good…" Tony said angrily and confused.

"I wasn't sure it was true. I wanted to know if it was true before I told you."

"You know what…. I don't even care… she and I may have the same father but that means nothing to me."

Tony turned and started to leave the room. Pepper called to him but he was too pissed to listen. He simply put his hand in the air to signal her to stop talking.

Tony stormed into his lab and went straight to working on the Iron Man suit again. As he was working me looked up and across the room. On the shelf across the room was a picture of his father and mother. Tony picked up a piece of the suit and tossed it at the photo. He missed the photo and the piece fell to the ground. Tony frustratingly put on the hand of the Iron Man suit and blasted the photo. The photo fell to the ground and landed face down. Tony felt a breath of relief but then it occurred to him that he didn't have a lot of photos of his parents.

Tony walked over to the photo and stood above it. He picked the framed photo up from the ground. When he turned the frame around he was expecting to see shattered glass and ashes of the photo. As he turned the frame around he saw that the glass had broken but the photo was only singed. He stood in silence and looked down at the photo in his hand. The photo was taken a few months before his parents died.

Tony had never really faced the death of his parents head on. After their death he was put in charge of Stark Industries. He was 21 and in charge of a large company. He was smart enough for it but it had only happened because his parents died. When his parent died there was a void left inside Tony. The women and the booze helped cover the void but they never helped fill the void. The void had been there before their death but in his parents death the void expanded. Pepper was one of the few people that helped fill in that void but still that void was there.

As Tony was processing his thoughts Pepper entered into the lab. She saw him standing with the singed photo in his hand. She saw that he was wearing the Iron Man hand and she put the two and two together and realized that he had blasted the photo. She called to him.

"Tony…"

He looked away from the photo and up at her.

"…I know you're mad. But I wanted to say I'm sorry. It's just…"

"There is no need to explain," Tony said understandingly.

"I understand why you did it."

There was a moment of silence between them. Pepper didn't want to push the subject but she needed to know if he was ok.

"So what are you thinking?"

"I admit I don't like that my father cheated on my mother but… it happened."

Tony looked down at the photo in his hand. He looked at his father as if to confront him.

"I'm just going to have to deal with that… and…."

For once in his life Tony wasn't completely sure what he wanted to do. He personally felt betrayed by his father's actions. He only wished that the affair had never happened but it had. Tony had always wanted a sibling when he was younger because he wanted someone to be there when he needed them. He would have been able to play with them and possibly teach them. Tony realized that there should be a connection between families but Tony had no connection to Sam. To each they were strangers when they should have known each other for year.

Tony stood there and mentally went over what his childhood would have been like with a sister. He smiled and realized that it would have been fun. Pepper stood silently watching Tony as he processed information. Tony looked away from the photo and up to Pepper.

"I want to meet her."


	3. Chapter 3

Pepper had set up a lunch at noon so Sam and Tony could get to know each other. Tony had asked Pepper about his sister but Pepper thought it best if Sam told him her life story.

Tony sat in the chair facing the door waiting for his sister to show up. He had been sitting there for the past half hour. Tony looked down at his watch and saw it was11:30. He then looked back up at the door. Pepper walked into the living room from the kitchen. As she walked into the living room she saw Tony sitting looking at the door.

"Tony, she's not going to get here sooner by you staring at the door."

Tony looked at her and shrugged his shoulders.

"I'm just waiting."

"You're nervous, aren't you?"

"No," Tony said defensively.

"Yes you are."

"Am not," Tony said like a child.

Pepper could tell that he was lying about his feelings. She was surprised by his nervousness.

"Wow… this is a new sight. Tony Stark is nervous."

"I am not nervous… ok maybe a little bit."

"It's going to be fine. Just be yourself."

"I know that… but what will we talk about…."

"Wait…. You don't know what to talk about…. You always know what to talk about."

"Seriously, what do you talk about with a sister you just found out you had and is only alive because my father had an affair with her mother?"

"Believe me there is plenty to talk about."

"What does that mean?"

"Oh, you'll find out. It's not my place to tell you."

At that moment the doorbell rang. Tony looked at Pepper and she looked back at him.

"Fine. I'll get it," Pepper said reluctantly.

Pepper went to the door. Tony stood up from the chair he was sitting in. He watched as Pepper opened the door and let his sister in. He looked at her and saw that she was blond and had blue eyes. Tony thought it was odd that they had no similar features.

Pepper and Sam walked into the living room. Pepper went and stood next to Tony while Sam decided to stand in front of him. When she stood in front of him they both froze. They stood staring at each other not knowing what to say. For Tony this was a first. He always has something to say.

"So…. You're Tony Stark."

"The one and only… and you are?"

"Sam Cain."

"Isn't Sam a boy's name."

"Isn't Tony a girl's name."

"Touché..."

Again there was silence between them. Pepper stood next to Tony waiting for the silence to break. She was surprised at Tony's lack of words. It was a side of Tony she had never witness before.

"So… how did you come to realize that we have the same father?"

"Awhile after my mother died I was going through her stuff and found a note telling me who my father was."

"So you never met my father?"

"No. My mother never really talked about him."

"You never asked about him?"

Sam felt like Tony was interrogating her about her lack of curiosity about her father.

"Not really. I asked about him a few times but my mother never really said anything about him. She just said his name was Howard and that he had died soon after my birth."

"How old are you?"

"25."

"You would have been four when he died."

Again there was silence between them. Tony became silent because he was remembering the day of his parents death.

"I'm sorry."

"Hmm…?"

"I'm sorry to bring up your parents deaths."

Tony nodded.

"Say why don't we sit down and have lunch?" Pepper said trying to lighten the mood.

"Yeah, that sounds nice." Sam said in agreement.

Sam and Tony went and sat at the table while Pepper went into the kitchen to get the food. Tony sat at the end of the table while Sam at the other end of the table.

"So where are you from?"

"Idaho."

"Idaho…. Really?"

"I was born and raised in Idaho. It's a beautiful place so I decided to stay in Idaho."

"Huh….. So what do you do…?"

"A little of this and a little of that but I mostly waitress."

"A waitress…." Tony said shocked.

Before Tony could say anything else Pepper walked into the room with the food. Since the table was slightly large Pepper decided to serve the food. She first went and put some food on Sam's plate and then went to Tony. When she leaned down to put the food on his plate he moved in closer to her.

"Are you sure we're related?" he whispered to Pepper.

Pepper gave him a dirty look.

"I mean we look nothing alike… and she's a waitress."

"DNA doesn't lie. Plus, you look more alike than you even realize," Pepper whispered back at him.

She looked over to see if Sam had heard the two of them whispering. Sam was no longer sitting at the table but instead she was standing next to the window looking outside. Pepper turned back to Tony.

"And what's wrong with being a waitress?"

"Nothing… nothing. It's just we have the same father…"

"What you were expecting her to be a genius?"

"Yeah…. I am."

Pepper's shoulders fell and she glared at him. She stood up and walked away from him. She then served herself some food and sat down. Sam turned away from the window and looked over at Tony.

"Are you done talking about me?"

"We weren't talking about you," Tony said trying to hide the fact that he had been talking about her.

"I could hear you…. Didn't anyone ever teach you how to whisper properly?"

Tony didn't know what to say. All he could mumble was "ah… ah…"

Sam was slightly mad at Tony's remarks because he was questioning her without even really knowing her. She started walking toward the table and when she got to the table she put both her hands on the table and leaned forward.

"I'll show you why we don't look alike…. Mr. Stark," she said angrily.

Before Tony's very own eyes he saw Sam transform from a woman with blond hair and blue eyed into a woman with black curly hair and emerald green eyes. After she transformed Tony jumped out of his seat and almost knocked the chair and himself over. His eyes were wide open and he started to breathe heavily. He looked over to Pepper and then back to Sam. Both of them were just staring at him. His breath became heavier and he darted out of the room. Tony ran into the bathroom and slammed the door behind him. He turned on the cold water and splashed the water in his face.

As Tony was splashing water in his face Jarvis said, "Sir, I believe you are having another panic attack."

Tony ignored Jarvis and continued to splash water on his face. With his face still in the sink he turned off the water. He stayed leaning to the sink for a moment before standing up. He looked at himself in the mirror and saw that the color had drained from his face. As he was staring at himself the water dripped from his face onto his shirt. Tony realized that Jarvis was right and he remembered the other panic attacks he's had since New York. He was still looking at himself in the mirror when he wiped the water from his face. As he stared at himself he realized that he had a real problem.

The knock at the door broke Tony from his thoughts. From the other side of the door Pepper said, "Tony, it's Pepper. Are you alright?"

"Yeah, yeah. I'm fine," Tony said trying to convince himself and her that nothing was wrong.

Tony opened the door to talk to Pepper.

"Tony, what's wrong?" she said worriedly.

He hesitated. He never liked admitted he had a problem.

"I… I thought she was Loki."

"Loki is in Asgard, you know that."

Again he hesitated. Before he thought his problem would go away but in light of recent events he realized his problem was only getting worse.

"Things haven't been the same since New York."

"I know." Pepper admitted.

Pepper hugged him. She had known there was something wrong but she didn't want to push him to tell her. She knew that when he was ready he could confide in her.

"Everything is going to be alright. We'll get through this."

Tony smiled. He didn't know what he would do without Pepper. For a moment he had forgotten what he was upset about but then he remembered. He knew that the only way to begin to get better he had to face his problem head on.

"Maybe we should get back in there."

Pepper nodded. They walked into the dining room where Sam was waiting patiently for them to return. She had been angry before but when Tony ran from the room she assumed that Tony was having trouble dealing with the events that happened in New York.

"Sorry, when I saw you transform I thought you were the Horned Popsicle."

At first Sam was confused because she didn't know much about Tony's past. She scanned her brain thinking about what he could be talking about. As she was thinking she remembered a photo of Loki that was in the papers after New York. She assumed he was talking about him.

"Oh. It is quite alright."

"So…."

Tony stopped what he was saying when he realized what Pepper was hinting at earlier when she said they looked like. He realized that they did have a family resemblance.

"I see that family resemblance, now."

"I thought you might," Sam said reassuringly.

"So…. you're not just my sister but you are also a shape shifter…. That seems like quite a coincidence."

"You're telling me. When I read who my father was I was overly shocked that my brother was Iron Man."

Tony and Sam realized that nothing in this situation was normal but they also realized that nothing in their life was ever normal. They both knew that as weird as their situation was they both needed to accept it.

"So how did you get your ability?"

"Well… it's a long story… but I have the time to tell you… well that is if you don't freak out again."

She looked at Tony and smiled. He realized that she was teasing him and in that moment he realized they didn't just have a family resemblance. He sat down next to Sam at the table.

"I am Iron Man. I think I can handle anything you are about to tell me."

Sam smiled and told Tony her life story. Meanwhile Pepper sat back and watched the two of them. They were finally starting to become comfortable with each other.


	4. Chapter 4

Tony had invited Sam to stay at his house and she accepted. He told her to make herself at home and if she needed anything she could just ask Jarvis. Tonight was her third night staying in the guest room and she couldn't sleep. She always had a hard time sleeping in new places so she tossed and turned trying to fall asleep. If Tony and Pepper were still awake she would have gotten up and hung out with them but they had already gone to bed. After some time of tossing and turning she decided to get up. She figured if she couldn't sleep she would either read something or watch some TV. She just wanted to pass some time till she was too tired to stay awake.

She got out of the bed and walked into the living room. She looked around trying to find a magazine to read but the only magazines that she could find were technological magazines. She was sure that they would put her to sleep but they were too over her head and if she read it she'd probably get a headache. She figured she would just find something else to do. She looked around the living room for a remote to the television but there was no remote. The only other option Sam thought of was to take a walk. She figured the fresh air would do her some good and hopefully it would help with her insomnia.

As Sam was walking towards the door she heard noises coming from the stairs leading down to Tony's lab. Tony had yet to show her his lab and the noises peeked her curiosity and so she decided to go see what the noises were coming from. As she got to the bottom of the stairs she saw Tony in his lab. His back was towards the door and he couldn't see her standing at the door. Sam knocked on the glass door but still Tony didn't notice her. Jarvis said to him, "Sir, Ms. Cain is at the door."

Tony turned and saw Sam standing at the door. He told Jarvis to open the door and Sam walked into the lab.

"Did I wake you?"

"No, I couldn't sleep. I was on my out for a walk when I heard noises coming from down here."

"Yeah. I couldn't sleep either?"

"So why can't you sleep?"

"It's not something that I want to talk about."

Sam sat on the work bench next to Tony. She figured that if he didn't want to talk about it then she would change the subject. Ever since she had met Tony she wondered what their father was like. She seldomly was curious about him when she was growing up but when she found out who he was she wanted to understand what type of man their father was.

"Can I ask you a question about your father?"

"I don't see why not."

"What was he like?"

"Well he worked hard… he drank a lot… he wasn't very affectionate and actually quite cold about his feelings… he was a great man… but not a great father."

"Do you think he would have loved me?"

Sam didn't mean to say it but it had popped out of her mouth. Tony looked down at the floor thinking. It was a hard question for Tony to answer. His father wasn't very affectionate towards him and he didn't know if he would have been the same way with Sam. After thinking for a moment he looked back up at her.

"To tell you the truth I don't know if he would. As I said before he was a great man… but he wasn't a great father. He was very distant and growing up I didn't even think he loved me. Last year I found a video of him where he said that I was his greatest creation but even then he never said he loved me…. In all reality you were better off without him."

Tony's answer surprised her. Even when she was younger she didn't ask her mom about him but she was occasionally curios about him. Whenever she would go to a friend's house she saw her friends interacting with their father. She would watch and imagine that if she had a father he would be as good with her as her friend dad was with her. She had known her father was dead but the rest of his life she could imagine. As a child she imagined that he was a great man, a man who would have loved her. Even though it pained her to hear what Tony said it was also for the best. Sam had an idealized view of her father and now she could see him as he truly was, a great man but simply not a great father.

"Thank you for telling me the truth."

"What are big brothers for?"

There was a moment of silence between them. Sam smiled and jumped off of the work bench. She walked over to one of the Iron Man suits that was standing next to the work bench across the room. She turned around and looked at Tony.

"Do you think I could test drive it?"

"They're only coded for me."

"That's not a problem."

Sam looked at Tony and smiled. She then transformed herself into Tony. When she told Tony about her ability she had forgotten to tell him that she could transform herself into anyone that she comes into contact with. Tony just looked at her.

"Huh… you know this could come in handy. I mean whenever I have to be somewhere you could go for me."

"I don't think so."

"You even sound like me," Tony said surprised.

"Well duh. When I transform into someone I transform completely."

"Complete?"

"Yeah…"

Tony looked over her body and realized that Sam was right. When she had transformed herself into him she had complete transformed into him. Tony couldn't see any differences between them besides for she didn't have the arc reactor. After Tony had scanned her body he turned and went over and grabbed something from a drawer in the wall. He then walked over to Sam and stuck a needle into her arm. Before she could pull away he drew some blood. After he pulled the needle out of Sam's arm she pulled away from him.

"Hey… what do you think you are doing?"

"Oh… just getting some blood."

"Wait, what for?"

"To see just how much you are like me."

Tony walked off and got into one of the Iron Man suits. Before Sam could say anything Tony flew out of the house. Sam had no idea what he was going to do with the blood and she was afraid. She had been hiding for the last 10 years and she was afraid his curiosity would result in her being discovered. They had threatened to kill her and she knew that if they found her they would kill her.

Sam walked over to one of the Iron Man suits in the glass caging. She opened the cage and got Jarvis to open the suit. Sam stepped inside the suit and it closed around her. There was a moment of confusion of how to get it to fly. She asked Jarvis what to do and he explained to her what needed to be done. She flew out of the house and into the sky. She had Jarvis lock onto Tony and she flew after him. When she caught up to him she didn't know how she was going to stop him. The only thing that she thought to do was to try ramming into him. She flew high above him and then flew strait down and rammed into him which knocked him off of his flight course and they both went crashing into a field.

The longer Tony had been Iron Man the more he was getting used to crash landings so he walked away from the plummet hardly damaged. He quickly stood up and turned to Sam who was still on the ground. Sam on the other hand was not use to being tossed to the ground so she had to take a moment to stand up. As Sam was standing up Tony shouted at her, "What the hell was that for?"

"You can't just take my blood and fly away," Sam said angrily.

"It's not like I am going to sell it on the black-market or something like that."

"I don't even know what you want with it. It is my blood not yours."

"Well technically it's mine considering you transformed yourself into me."

"I'll give you that… but the consequences of my blood getting into the wrong hands are my cross to bear."

"I'm not going to just give it to a random person on the street."

Tony looked at her and saw the fear in her eyes. Even though they barely knew each other he felt hurt that she didn't trust him.

"You don't trust me, do you?"

"It's not that I don't trust you… it's just if the people operating that school, whoever they are, found out about me they will kill me."

Sam felt like she was about to burst into tears. Tony realized that Sam was truly terrified of the people that had abducted her. At that point of time the only thing he could think to do was to hug her. They stood hugging each other and in that moment Tony finally felt like a big brother.


	5. Chapter 5

Bruce is currently living in an old Stark Industries building. After New York when Tony and Bruce went on a road trip Tony suggested that Bruce move into the old building. Bruce wasn't sure if he wanted to live in California but the building was in a remote place and he would have access to a lab 24/7.

Bruce was in his bed asleep. He awoke from the sounds of someone entering the building. He automatically knew it was Tony because lately Tony would wake him in the middle of the night when he couldn't sleep. The first few times it happened Tony said he just wanted to do some science experiments with him. Then after about a week Tony came clean to Bruce about how he was having a hard time dealing with what happened in New York. Since then when Tony came over he and Bruce would work in the lab or just talk to one another.

Bruce had barely just gone to sleep and so he lay in his bed not wanting to get up. The door of his room opened and the light spilled in from the hallway. Tony walked into the room and walked up to the bed.

"Wakey, wakey. I have a surprise for you."

Bruce opened his eyes and looked up at Tony.

"Why can't you visit me at a decent time?"

"Believe me… you're going to want to see this."

"Now what?"

"Just come out and you'll see."

Tony left the room. Bruce got out of bed and followed Tony into the lab. When they entered the lab Bruce saw two Iron Man suits standing in the middle of the room. Bruce turned to Tony.

"That's your surprise? You wanted to show me another Iron Man suit?"

"Nope, it's what inside the suit."

Tony turned to the suit Sam was in. He nodded to let her know that she could come out. The suit opened and Sam stepped out of the suit. Since the suit was only coded for Tony when she stepped out of the suit she was still formed as Tony. Bruce looked at her and then back to Tony.

"I can't believe it. You cloned yourself."

"Nope, not a clone."

Bruce looked back over to Sam. Tony nodded letting Sam know that Bruce could be trusted with her secret. Sam transformed herself into her true appearance. Bruce looked at her and then back to Tony.

"Ok… not a clone… but what is she?"

"I thought you'd be more understanding since you can transform into the Angry Green Giant."

Bruce just looked at Tony.

"Ok… ok… I'll just tell you… she's my sister."

"Wait… I thought you were an only child."

"Well so did I until a few days ago. She's my half-sister… same father, different mother."

Bruce turned back to Sam. He walked over to Sam and stuck out his hand.

"It's nice to meet you, I'm Bruce."

They shook hands.

"It's nice to meet you Bruce. I'm Sam."

"So how exactly did you do that?"

"I have the ability to shape shift into any human or animal that I've had contact with."

"So if you wanted to you could transform yourself into me?"

"Let's see."

Sam transformed into Bruce. Tony looked at Bruce and then back at Sam.

"I wonder if she can transform herself into the other guy?" Tony asked.

"Well theoretically she could… but I don't think she should try it," Bruce said.

Sam transformed herself back to her own appearance. Sam looked at Bruce wondering what they were talking about. Bruce was reluctant to tell her about his ability but since she shared her ability with him he thought it would be respectful for him to do the same.

"I can transform into… a green monster."

"Oh ok… I know what you are talking about."

Bruce nodded. Bruce was used to people being afraid of him after they found out what he could turn into and he expected Sam to be taken aback by the realization of what he could turn into.

"I have seen the New York footage... You were amazing."

"Ah… thanks."

Tony looked at Sam and then to Bruce and smiled.

"Well I hate to break up the love fest between the two shape shifters admiring the others work but I think we should do some tests."

"Wait you never said anything about tests," Sam said angrily.

"Well we need to understand your ability. We should know what you can and can't do and how much of a transformation you can do."

"She isn't a lab rat, Tony."

"I know that. But we need to understand all we can about this. I mean what if your ability is causing damage to your body or worse… what if it is slowly killing you."

She wasn't sure what to say to Tony's remarks. She could understand his point but at the same time she was reluctant to be tested on. She was locked away for two years and had repeated tests done on her and she didn't want to relive that situation again. As much as she didn't want to do the tests Tony did have a point, she knew very little about her ability and for all she knew it could be slowly killing her.

Sam reluctantly said, "I'll do it but if at any time I want to stop we'll stop."

"I'm fine with that."

For the next couple of hours Tony and Bruce did tests on Sam. They drew blood from her in different forms. They figured they would compare the blood from each different form and test to see if there were any similarities between them. They also took x-rays to see if everything about Sam changed when she transformed into something else. After many of the tests were done Sam lied down on a lab table and fell asleep.

After Sam fell asleep Bruce and Tony were testing the blood. Bruce started to run tests on the blood while Tony went to get coffee. Bruce sat down in front of the machine to take a short break and fell asleep. He only got a few minutes of sleep before Tony walked up and slapped him on the shoulder to wake him. When Bruce awoke Tony handed him a cup of coffee.

"Thanks."

Tony sat in the chair next to Bruce. They both were looking at the machine that was analyzing the blood. Bruce looked over at Sam who was asleep on a lab table.

"Shouldn't we wake her or move her?"

Tony looked over to Sam.

"She's fine… as long as she doesn't roll off."

Both Bruce and Tony were staring at Sam.

"So… how exactly did she happen?" Bruce asked.

"My dad had an affair with her mother."

"No. I mean how did she get her ability?"

"Someone forcefully experimented on her."

"Oh…"

The two of them went back to silence. The silence only lasted for a moment before Bruce broke it.

"So… do you believe her?"

"What's not to believe?"

"Well… everything."

"Are you saying I shouldn't trust her?"

"Well… not exactly. I just don't want this to be a hoax or something. I mean I know you are still dealing with what happened in New York and I just want to make sure you're alright."

"I'm not going to lie. It did occur to him that she wasn't my sister but after I spent some time with her… something just clicked…. I don't even know how to explain it… I mean one moment I am questioning everything and then the next I'm ok with it."


	6. Chapter 6

When Sam woke she realized she had been sleeping on the lab table. There was a kink in her neck from sleeping on the hard surface. She sat up and rolled her neck to get the kink out. She looked over and saw Tony sitting alone across the room. Sam slid off the table and walked over to him.

"So did you get the results?"

"Yep, and they are pretty interesting. We were looking at the blood I took from you in my lab and it turns out to be an identical match to mine. We also looked at the other blood samples and there were no similarities between them and they all seemed like they had come from different people."

"Is that a good thing?"

"It's amazing. When you transform your body becomes completely like the thing you transformed yourself into."

"I already told you that."

"Well yes but it is nice to know for sure."

"So is everything ok with me?"

"Yes, you're in perfect health."

"Good, can we go back to your place?"

"Yeah."

Tony got out of the chair. As they were walking towards the Iron Man suits it occurred to Sam that they weren't saying goodbye to Bruce. Sam stopped in her tracks.

"Wait, shouldn't we say thank you to Bruce and tell him goodbye?"

"He's asleep. You can thank him at the Halloween party."

"Wait what Halloween party."

"Oh. I didn't tell you. Every year I host a Halloween party… I wasn't going to this year but it's a tradition and everyone was expected me to."

"Do I have to go?"

"Well it's going to be at the house so it's either that or leave."

She just looked at Tony. She really didn't want to go to a party.

"Don't worry it will be fun… You're going to need to get a costume… You can go shopping with Pepper."

When they got back to the house Pepper was waiting for them. She didn't look happy.

"Where the hell have you two been?"

"We wanted to do some tests."

"Actually he wanted to do some tests. I just went because I didn't know what was going on," Sam stated.

"Sounds like Tony."

Tony just shrugged at Pepper's comment.

"Pepper you need to take Sam shopping."

Sam rolled her eyes. She wasn't a huge shopper and when she did go shopping she liked to do it by herself.

"Shopping for what?"

"The Halloween party…. Actually just take her shopping for anything she wants."

Pepper looked at Tony and then to Sam.

"Let me change and we can go," Sam said.

Sam went and changed and then she and Pepper went to go shopping. The first place they went was a fancy uptown store. Sam wasn't actually sure what she was supposed to be looking for so she was poking through the dresses but didn't see anything of her liking.

"What am I looking for?" Sam asked Pepper.

"Anything really. Tony said you can get whatever you want."

"This place isn't really my style."

"Well we can go wherever you want."

They left the fancy uptown store and went to a casual dress store. The clothing at the new store was more to Sam's liking. Even though Sam didn't usually like shopping with other people Pepper was very helpful and made shopping fun. Sam would try on something and when she came out Pepper would give her opinion on how it looked on her. Pepper was also very helpful when it came to getting clothing that would fit her in her appearance as Chloe and would also look good in Sam's true appearance. Since Tony said to get whatever she wanted Sam bought a verity of clothing that would fit for a verity of occasions.

Sam was having a hard time finding a Halloween costume for the party. When they looked at the costume store Sam couldn't find anything that she liked because all the costumes were too skimpy. They left the costume store with nothing. As they were leaving the store Sam looked over and saw a second hand store across the street.

Back in Idaho Sam shopped second hand stores regularly. She was a simple girl with simple tastes and always found the best clothing where no one else looked. When Sam walked into the second hand store she felt comfortable. As Sam was walking to the back of the store she came across a dress that she thought was absolutely stunning. The dress was a long silk dress appearing to be from the 20s. The color at the top was white but as the color went down the dress it started to turn to a light pink. The pattern on the dress was floral and in the middle of the dress was a rose. Sam found the dress absolutely stunning and decided she would use it as a Halloween costume.

After shopping Pepper and Sam went to lunch at a small little bistro. Sam had had a fun day shopping with Pepper but several times while shopping her thoughts kept roaming back to her home. Living with Tony was on the opposite spectrum of where she lived back in Idaho. Her house was small and simple. It had a kitchen, a living room, two bedrooms, and two bathrooms. Tony's house on the other hand was so large that it could probably fit 50 or more of her houses inside of it.

As Sam's thoughts wondered back to home she wasn't eating and was just poking at her lunch. Pepper took notice of her actions.

"Is something wrong with your food?"

"Oh… no… I was just thinking about home."

"You miss it."

"Yeah… I love it there. It's so simple and here…"

"It's so complicated."

"Yeah… but don't get me wrong. I really like spending time with you and Tony… and even though it is complicated here, I'll miss it when I have to leave."

"What do you mean leave?" Pepper asked confused

"I'm going to have to go back home eventually. I have a job that I have to get back to. Plus, I don't want to overspend my welcome."

"Tony loves having you here. You two are still getting to know each other and I think going back home now would just be stepping backwards."

"I'd love to stay but I have a job back home. I can't stay here and not have a job. I don't want to be a freeloader."

Pepper realized that Sam had a good point. As Pepper was thinking about what Sam said she realized there was a way that Sam could stay.

"Why don't you go to work for Stark Industries or Tony?"

"I'm not a genius."

"You don't have to be a genius to work for Tony…. Maybe you could be his secretary or something along that line."

Sam was reluctant to work for Tony. She didn't want a job to just be handed to her on a silver platter. Plus, she had her pride. Sam wanted to get a job that she was right for and she was qualified to do.

"I don't know… I don't want to just be handed a job. Plus, I don't even think I am qualified."

"All you really have to do is keep an eye on him. Keep him organized… answer his phone when he won't… and get him to the places he needs to be when he is reluctant to go."

"So basically I'd be babysitting him."

Pepper laughed. It was true when she worked for Tony there were movements when it felt like she was babysitting him.

"Just don't tell him that," Pepper said while still laughing.

Sam thought about it. She did want to keep getting to know Tony and the only way that was going to happen would be if she stayed. As much as she was uncertain about working for Tony she figured she could at least start working for him and then maybe along the way find somewhere else to work.


	7. Chapter 7

When Sam and Pepper got back from shopping the house was completely decorated for the Halloween party. Sam went and dropped her stuff in her room before coming back into the living room. Tony was sitting on the couch with Pepper. While Sam was in her room Pepper told Tony about her idea of Sam working for Tony.

As Sam was walking towards them Tony sad, "So you want to work for me?"

"Well… not really but it is either that or I go back to Idaho."

"We wouldn't want that. You can be my assistant."

"Are you sure I'm even qualified for that."

"It's not like I'm going to have you running experiments or anything like that. It would be work like answering the phone and scheduling appointments… and since you can shape shift maybe taking my place at some of those appointments."

Tony smiled. Pepper and Sam glared at him. He looked at Sam and then back at Pepper and then back at Sam.

"Ok… ok… that is out of the question but for sure you'll be answering the phone and scheduling appointments."

"Doesn't Jarvis do that?" Sam asked.

"Geez Louise… Can we just figure this out later?"

Sam nodded.

"The party is going to start soon. You two better get ready."

Sam looked at what Tony was wearing. He wasn't in costume and was in his normal attire.

"Aren't you going to get into a costume?"

"I don't need as costume."

"Why's that?"

"Iron Man doesn't need a costume."

"If you don't have to dress up then why do we have to dress up?"

"You aren't Iron Man."

Sam rolled her eyes. Pepper went to her room to change while Sam went to her room to change.

The Halloween party had only started an hour ago but the party was in swing. Sam had wondered around the party for awhile but she wasn't in the mood to party. She grabbed a drink and then sat down on the couch. She didn't want to be there but she had no way of leaving. Tony and Pepper were walking around greeted people here and there. When someone asked him where his costume was he would say "I'm Iron Man, I don't need a costume." Pepper was wearing a little red riding hood costume. Sam was wearing a dress that she gotten at the second hand store when she was shopping with Pepper. It wasn't a Halloween dress but Sam loved the way it looked and she wanted to wear it.

Sam was sitting on the couch looking at the crowd of people and their costumes. People were in all different types of costumes. There was everything from Jessica Rabbit to Frankenstein's creature. Sam admired the verity of costumes at the party.

Sam didn't know anyone at the party which put her in a nonparty mood. She didn't want to mingle around when she didn't have anyone to mingle with. She was expecting Bruce to show up but he hadn't showed up yet. She thought that if Bruce showed up then at least she would know one person she could talk to.

As Sam was sitting on the couch a man sat next to her. He was in an Elvis Presley costume and had his black greasy hair combed back. The man smiled and looked Sam up and down. He leaned back into the couch and put his arm up on the couches back.

"So how do you know Tony?"

"I just started working for him."

"Ah…"

The man looked nothing like Elvis Presley and instead looked like a creeper. He kept looking down at Sam's chest which made her feel very uncomfortable. The man smiled, looked over to the crowd of people and then back at Sam.

"You wanna go somewhere private?"

"You met me two seconds ago why would I want to go anywhere private with you?"

"Come on. I can show you a good time."

Sam didn't want to deal with this man so she simply just stood up and left him sitting on the couch. One dumb man was enough for Sam to decide to leave the part and go to her room. She entered into her room and sat down on the bed. She sat there for a moment listening to the people out in the main room.

Sam stood and went into the bathroom. As she was washing her hands she heard the door to her bedroom open and close. She was afraid it might be the creepy man dressed as Elvis Presley. She walked out into the bedroom cautiously. The man standing in her room had blond hair and was wearing khaki pants, a checkered long sleeve shirt, and a brown leather jacket. When he turned around he was surprised to see her standing in the room.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't know anyone was in here. I was trying to escape the party."

"You and me both."

Sam sat down on the bed. The man still stood in front of the closed door.

"You're not enjoying yourself?"

"Not at all. I don't even want to be here."

"Me either. I only came because I thought it would be rude not to."

"I wish I could leave."

"Why don't you?"

"I don't have a vehicle to leave… A theater in town is showing the 1931 Dracula and I would much rather be there."

"I have a motorcycle outside if you want to leave."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I wouldn't mind getting out of here either."

"Ok, just let me change."

The man stepped out of the room and into the hallway. People were pushing past him to get to the rooms down the hall. He just stood there waiting for Sam. He only was standing there for a few minutes before she came out of her room in jeans, a Bela Lugosi t-shirt, biker boots, and a black leather jacket. Sam locked her door and they turned to leave.

Sam was so excited to leave that she didn't even question leaving with a perfect stranger. As Sam and the man were walking through the crowd she noticed Tony and Pepper talking with someone. She was going to tell them she was leaving but she didn't want to bother them. They left the house and parked outside on the left was a motorcycle. He got on motorcycle and then looked up at her. She stood staring at him and realized that she didn't even know who this man was. He seemed like such a nice guy that she didn't question when he had suggested they both leave the party.

"So… it just occurred to me that I don't know your name."

"I'm sorry. I was so thrilled to leave that I didn't even introduce myself."

Sam laughed.

"Me either."

Sam stuck her hand out and they shook hands. As they were shaking hands Sam said, "I'm Chloe Beckett."

He smiled and said, "I'm Steve… Steve Rogers."


End file.
